Doubts of Parenthood
by Saraphinethemysterious
Summary: Katniss and Peeta deal with the challenges and difficulties of being parents. A series of One-Shots (kind of) (they mix together kind of but can be considered separate) (Thus being somewhat One-Shots). Completely fluffy. R&R.
1. Katniss in Labor

**Katniss is in labor and the group awaits the arrival of a new member to the family. Doubts and fears fly in the moments before meeting a brand new Mellark family member  
One-Shot. Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**Katniss in Labor**

Katniss started to regret giving into Peeta's wanting kids about nine months after she caved. To be more precise, it was when she heard Haymitch tell her she was having another contraction, for the 5th time.

Next to the bed sat Peeta. He was in a chair from the dining room downstairs. Katniss silently scolded him for having the time to bring up a chair when she was in labor for Christ's sake. Her hormones were raging as she looked at the sitting Peeta next to her. His right hand gripped hers for support during the contractions and the other came up to wipe away a few of her falling tears.

She realized she was crying. "How pathetic is that?" she thought to herself as she looked back at Peeta.

He was smiling wider than she'd seen in a long time. Part of her was so glad that he was happy and would've smiled back if the contraction she was having hadn't taken a turn for the worse. Katniss shut her eyes and clutched Peeta's hand so hard she knew it would leave a mark. "What does his hand matter, I'm in labor." She thought.

Suddenly she was so mad at her husband. He'd done this to her! He was the reason she was going through this much pain right now. Her breaths were short and her head was pounding. The contraction ended not a minute too soon and Katniss reminded herself that she had agreed to have a baby too. Damn hormones. It wasn't Peeta's fault. Well… it wasn't entirely his fault.

Katniss didn't know what was happening. She went into labor two weeks early and should've had more time to prepare. She wasn't ready to have a baby. What if the kid didn't like her? "I'm scared," she realized.

Only she didn't realize she had said it out loud until Peeta spoke to her. "It's all right Katniss. Everything is going to be fine-no… everything is going to be perfect." She could hear the smile in his voice even before she looked at him. While he was soothingly talking to her he, silently as not to draw her attention, replaced the hand she was holding with his other less damaged one. "Damn sneak of a husband," she thought to herself.

"Alright sweetheart you need to push," she heard Haymitch say from in front of her. Katniss couldn't really see him from over her knees but she knew he was as on edge as she was.

"No, no I-" she started to object until she felt Peeta raise her hand in his. She felt his lips place a gentle kiss to her knuckles.

"It's okay, just push Katniss," he soothed.

Katniss couldn't think straight, her breath was heavy and she could barely see straight, but she pushed anyway. Tears fell down her face as fast as Peeta could brush them away. His eyes turned from being happy to concerned for his wife. Still Katniss managed to push. Once, twice…

"Okay one more time," Haymitch even sounded a bit concerned for her in that moment.

"I can't-" Katniss sobbed. She wasn't strong enough, she was convinced of it. She couldn't have this baby. It hurt too much.

Haymitch let out a breath and stood up. He looked Katniss in the eyes and raised his eyebrows. "Really? Because right now pushing is your only option sweetheart. Plus I seriously doubt that the teenage girl, who started a revolution unintentionally, can't deliver this baby."

"Shut up Haymitch!" Katniss spat at him. Meanwhile Peeta was just trying to stay out of the way. She may have said a few harsh things to him during the beginning stages of the contractions.

"And those are the hormones talking," he muttered sitting back down in front of her, satisfied about his words of wisdom.

"It's okay Katniss," promised Peeta. Katniss meanwhile was trying to calm herself and her hormones down before she went off calling Haymitch a sick bastard.

Her head turned to her husband, his eyes were full of concern and warmth. "It's not okay!" She cried. "I-I'm going to be such an awful mom. I'm not ready! What if…what if it hates me?"

"Is that what you're thinking?" Peeta asked sounding truly shocked. "Katniss… you're going to be an amazing mom. And I hope I'm going to be a good enough dad too. And- yes, we're going to make mistakes but at least we'll have each other. And our kid is going to love you and me because we love it."

If Katniss wasn't crying before he spoke, she was then. She was still hesitant about having a kid but like Haymitch said, there wasn't much she could do about it now, she was already in labor. She looked at Peeta with her face stained in tears. "You're going to be an amazing dad."

He smiled at her again. She could lose herself in his smile. Or his eyes. Or anything about him. Haymitch was right in what he'd said so long ago. She could live a hundred lifetimes and never deserve him. But he still loved her. "Now push."

And she did. And time seemed to fade away as her screams echoed throughout the room with Peeta's words of encouragement. Those were the only sounds in the bedroom; until they weren't. No. After one of the many pushes something was different. Added to the sounds was a faint cry, but from a new person.

Haymitch stood up cradling a small wining baby, wrapped in blankets, in his arms. Katniss cried more just seeing the picture, maybe it was the hormones maybe it wasn't, it didn't matter right then. She looked next to her to see that even Peeta was forming tears in the corners of his eyes.

Katniss knew Haymitch was going to hand her the baby first so she moved over on the bed slowly (she'd just given birth you know) so that Peeta could sit next to her. He stood up from his seat clumsily and quickly settled down next to Katniss on the mattress staring at the bundle the entire time. His arm went around his wife and they both stared up in awe at the little weeping baby that they had yet to meet.

"Katniss, Peeta, you have a baby girl." Haymitch said in a low voice settling the baby in its mother's arms. The young couple gaped at the baby girl as she cried and cooed up to her parents. And they were both happily crying by then.

"Hi, little one," Katniss grinned watching her daughter play with her finger in awe. She had Peeta's blue eyes and a little tuft of brown hair that resembled Katniss's. And she was perfect.

"She's so beautiful." Peeta's arms tightened around his wife as he buried his face in her neck still allowing him to see their beautiful child. Katniss felt a few wet tears fall from his eyes to her neck.

And then she didn't feel awful or unsure anymore. She was still scarred and she could tell Peeta was too. But that didn't matter then; they had a beautiful daughter who was already everything to them. And honestly, there was enough love to go around between the three of them.

**A/N-Thank you for reading! I wasn't quite sure how I felt about this story but uploaded it because I couldn't think of anything else to do to it. R&R. Thanks!**


	2. A Cry in the Night

**Katniss and Peeta's 3 month old daughter wakes up crying in the middle of the night, Peeta goes to calm her down and Katniss follows, knowing he just woke up from a nightmare.  
One-Shot. Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**A Cry in the Night**

Katniss truly realized just how good a husband Peeta was at about 3:00 am one normal Tuesday night.

The faint cries from the baby monitor woke both of them up, Peeta was just the first one to actually get out of the bed and do something about it. And for that, Katniss was eternally grateful.

Willow was Katniss's angel. And she loved her and Peeta more than anything else in the world. But when she woke up crying in the middle of the night…that was when she was Peeta's daughter.

Peeta rose from the bed and left to calm down the little munchkin in the next room. Katniss watched as he did, waking up more and more every moment she kept her eyes open. She knew that Peeta had already been awake when Willow started crying. It was the way he was so quick to go to her. He couldn't have done that fresh out of sleep.

Slowly but surely Katniss sat up on the bed. She rubbed her eyes a few times and then stood up in search of the rest of her family.

She rounded the corner into the small room that was just down the hallway a bit. It was a nice size; not too big, not too small. The walls were pained orange because Willow's gender wasn't known until she was born. The room contained all of the essentials: a closet, dresser, rocking chair, changing station, and crib.

Next to the crib stood Peeta, cradling their daughter in his arms, gently rocking her. She wasn't really the type to get fussy at night, but that didn't mean it never happened. On average Katniss and Peeta woke up more at night from nightmares than their daughter did at all.

Peeta was still the type to freeze after waking up from a nightmare, while Katniss always woke up sobbing. Luckily most of the time, she was able to keep it down so that she didn't wake up Willow.

Katniss walked up behind Peeta, making sure he heard her quiet footsteps so that he wouldn't be surprised. He turned his head to look at her just as she wrapped her arms around him from behind. She nestled her face against his shoulder, or as close to his shoulder as she could go with the height difference.

Peeta smiled at her and whispered. "You're tired. Go back to bed, Katniss. I can take care of Willow."

Katniss shrugged off his offer. "You had a nightmare." She stated as a distant way to ask how he was feeling.

She went up on her toes so that she could see over his shoulder at the almost sleeping baby in his arms. Her arms tightened around him when she saw her daughter's precious face.

He leaned his head against hers and relaxed slightly in her arms. "I'm okay."

Katniss hated that answer. He wasn't okay. And neither was she. No one was okay after the nightmares that they had. Those were the nightmares that made you want to curl up in a ball and stay there forever crying. They made you want to rip all your hair out and claw and the floor because they hurt so bad.

Katniss sighed into her husband's neck. "I wish you would've woken me up."

Peeta didn't say anything. He knew she wanted that. Katniss always asked him to wake her up if he had a nightmare, but he never did. He didn't know if it was him trying to be strong or just not wanting anyone else to see him vulnerable. No, that wasn't it; he was always himself around Katniss. Vulnerable or not, she had seen him at his best and his worst. So why didn't he wake her up?

He just didn't want to wake her up. She barely got enough sleep as is with her own nightmares to deal with, let alone his. He didn't want to put that on Katniss.

Instead of answering her question he simply looked back down at the bundle in his arms. His love for their daughter was unfathomable. And he knew his wife's was too. Every time Katniss even saw Willow her eyes lit up brighter than Peeta had ever imagined possible. "She's so beautiful."

Peeta felt Katniss nod into his shoulder as they both stared down at the sleeping child. Katniss smiled slightly and murmured very quietly, "We made a good kid."

Her husband let out a small laugh, but stopped abruptly so that Willow wouldn't wake up from his shaking chest. He smiled over his shoulder. "Yeah. We did."

Katniss unraveled her arms from the boy with the bread and went on her toes one more time to whisper in his ear. "Come to bed."

Peeta saw Katniss back up a few steps as he gently placed Willow back into her crib and wished the sleeping girl goodnight. He turned to see his wife staring up at him, eyes full of love and compassion. She reached out and grabbed his hands in hers. Her smile was radiant as she gently pulled Peeta backwards out of the room.

Once in the hallway Peeta pulled a hand away and quietly closed the door to their 3 month old daughter's bedroom. As soon as the edge of the door connected with the frame he turned and pulled his wife to him with the one hand that he still held. Katniss half tumbled into him trying to keep her balance.

Peeta stared down at his beautiful wife and wrapped an arm around her waist to pull her closer. Katniss let out a small laugh at his sudden audacity and sly smile. With the sudden confidence Peeta made a risky move and swept his wife up into his arms bridal style.

Maybe it was just the sleep deprivation, but she was giggling into the curve of his neck the entire time it took to him to carry her back to their room.

**A/N- Thanks for reading! Review if you like it or not, what you liked about it and what you may not have. Thanks!**


	3. What Can I Do

**Willow won't stop crying. Katniss doesn't know what's wrong and can't make her stop. Peeta comes home and has a few more theories of what they can try.  
One-Shot. (ish kind of) Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**What Can I Do**

She'd been crying for 3 hours nonstop. And Katniss had tried everything possible to make it stop, but nothing worked. No, Willow kept crying. She wasn't tired. She wasn't hungry. She wasn't teething. And whatever else there was that could be causing her daughter to cry like this-it wasn't that either.

Katniss was completely manic. She bounced her daughter up and down in her arms at a brisk pace, praying that it would work and make Willow stop. She's tried singing. She's tried cooing. She's even tried debating with her 4 month old daughter. And now Katniss had resulted to praying. That wasn't doing much luck either.

To add onto the stress that the young mother was feeling, it hurt to see her daughter crying and not know what to do. Katniss felt her heart ache when she looked at the dried tears on her baby's face and knew she couldn't make them stop. She didn't know what else to do.

The sound of her daughter's wails had become so attuned to Katniss that she heard Peeta walk in the front door not even a second after he did. She silently hoped that he would know what to do.

Peeta rounded the corner of the kitchen just as Katniss was readying herself to go to him. "Everything okay?"

Katniss let out an exasperated gasp as she bounced her daughter some more. "No," she admitted immediately. "I don't know what's wrong. I've tried everything and she just won't calm down!" Peeta was watching her calmly as she explained, but there was a bit of concern in his eyes. Katniss understood. She sounded crazed even to herself and was surprised Peeta didn't say so. He probably realized that she was just tired and worried.

When she was finished Peeta walked up and took Willow out of her arms. "Alright," he soothed, probably more for her than Willow. "Is she hungry?"

"No." Katniss tried to keep her voice above the sobs of her daughter.

"And I take it you aren't tired either because then you'd be sleeping and quiet." Peeta said in his baby voice. That usually settled Willow down some but instead she just cried louder. Peeta bit his lip and turned to his wife. "Have you tried her bear?"

Katniss quickly rushed off at the new idea. She dashed into the nursery looking for the stuffed animal. The quicker she found the bear, the quicker Willow would calm down, and then Katniss could calm down. She found the bear in her daughters crib along with her blanket and brought both trinkets out to Peeta who was still sane (amazingly) and cooing at their daughter.

He grabbed the bear from his wife and held it up to a crying Willow. "Look! It's your bear, Willow! Aren't you happy to see your bear?"

Still crying.

Peeta set the bear down on the kitchen counter with a sigh. So much for that plan. "Do you think she's teething?"

Katniss could barely hear him anymore. "No, she isn't growing any teeth yet."

"Does she have a dirty diaper?"

Katniss considered the idea. "Well I changed her a few hours ago but…"

"Well let's try that," Peeta cooed again with a smile. Still crying.

Katniss followed her husband to the nursery where he gently laid Willow down at the changing station. He undid her onesie and diaper, despite her struggling, to reveal…

"Well look at that. You need a new diaper don't you honey?"

Katniss looked and saw that Willow _had_ in fact ruined her diaper. Part of her was mad that she hadn't thought of that, but what the fuck did it matter? As soon as she was all changed and clean Peeta picked his daughter up again and she nestled into his arms. It was silent. Thank God.

Katniss nearly forgot what quiet sounded like.

The only sound to be made was a small gasp from her in happiness. Peeta gave her a small smile before placing a now sleeping Willow into her crib and leading his wife out of the nursery. They tiptoed to their room quietly scared that any noise at all would start up another series of tears from the sleeping baby.

When they got to their room Peeta pulled Katniss into his arms innocently. She hugged him back, wrapping her arms around him tight and letting go of a long sigh into his chest. Peeta chuckled and put one arm around her waist and the other over her hair, stroking it softly. She relaxed into him, too tired to really speak.

"This is the first time it's been quiet in hours." She got out past her drooping eyelids and unsteady legs.

"I'm sorry. It was a long day at the bakery too." Peeta closed his eyes and rested his head on hers.

"Let's nap."

Katniss didn't stay awake longer than it took for the both of them to fall onto the bed. Peeta still had his arms wrapped around her and she flattened her hands out on his chest, enjoying the warmth. Their legs tangled together as they drifted from the world to land that was sleep.

**A/N- This one is shorter than the others. Sorry, I tried to add to it but it seemed perfect at this length. Thanks for reading. I love the reviews I've been getting! They're so nice. Thank you!**


	4. Stepping Stones

**Willow takes her first steps at a family dinner. Katniss revels in her love for her daughter.  
One-Shot (ish). Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**Stepping Stones**

"Come on Willow. Let's walk over to Mommy."

Katniss smiled from across the bedroom at her baby girl standing up with both of her hands in Peeta's, who was the one mostly keeping her balanced. Peeta stood behind her and they slowly walked, which was mostly Peeta carrying Willow as her feet grazed the ground, over to Katniss. Her smile brightened as she heard her little girl make cooing and gurgling sounds as her daddy carried her.

They'd been working on walking for a while now. There really wasn't a rush. Willow could stand and sit and crawl, and that was already more than Katniss and Peeta could handle. Crawling was really a code word for 'let's grab everything I can, and put it in my mouth.'

The two of them thought that they had already baby proofed the house when their daughter was born, but when she learned how to crawl, it proved there was more work to be done.

When Willow and Peeta made their way over to Katniss, he let go of his daughter's hands and she plopped down to a sitting position, clearly satisfied with herself. Katniss placed the last pillow on the bed, done with making it, and sat down criss cross applesauce in front of her daughter.

"Good job Willow!" She laughed a bit and grabbed her daughter's hands, pulling her back up into a standing position.

"Ba da ba," she gurgled to her mother, laughing. Peeta was still standing above the two of them watching.

Once Katniss gave a bit of leverage to her daughter and let her hands fall a bit so that Willow could stand on her own, she fell back down to a sitting position and gurgled some more.

Katniss sighed as she watched her daughter crawl backwards to her daddy's foot and begin to play with his sock. Peeta laughed while his wife stood up and reached down to pull her daughter up with her. "That's Daddy's foot. What are you doing with Daddy's foot?"

"Ga daba."

Baby talk was pretty much the only talk in their house now a day. Even when Willow was napping Peeta and Katniss would slip out some baby talk unintentionally. Their lives pretty much revolved around their daughter. And she was getting bigger and loved to grab and put in her mouth anything she can get a hold of.

Neither Katniss nor Peeta complained though. Their daughter was beautiful and they couldn't imagine life without her.

"So I was in the store getting more alcohol today, and the cashier- fucking hot." Haymitch was over for dinner again, like he was almost every night. Plus, it was spaghetti night and Haymitch never missed that. He took another swig of his drink and started laughing to himself.

"Haymitch!" Katniss and Peeta yelled in unison staring at him.

They sat at the dining room table eating an early dinner. Willow sat in her high chair between Haymitch and Katniss, and Peeta was opposite of his daughter making funny faces whenever she felt like she wasn't getting enough attention. Katniss had already fed her earlier, while Haymitch complained about all the 'here comes the choo choo train' sounds, and was now sitting playing with her toys while the rest of them ate.

"What?" The drunkard asked wondering what he'd done.

"Don't swear! There's a baby at the table." Peeta scolded.

Haymitch made an 'oh' sound as he looked to their daughter. She stared back at him curiously and made a few cooing sounds. Katniss smiled when she saw him trying to hide a grin.

After dinner Haymitch stuck around to spend some time with the little one. As much as he complained that she was a little drool maker, Katniss and Peeta knew he secretly loved her. When they weren't looking he would make funny faces to make her laugh. And occasionally there'd be a bit of baby talk that would come out of his mouth when he was sure they weren't around.

He sat on the ground with Willow as she crawled around him grabbing toys and playing with his hair. Katniss was sitting a few feet in front of them watching as she put some of her daughters toys away in their bin. And it was Peeta's night to do the dishes so he was in the kitchen.

"Alright little drool maker," Haymitch said only in a half serious tone as Willow pulled slightly on his hair. "Go to your mom. She'll let you harass her. Not me. I'm not a play toy."

He lifted her up to a standing position and faced her towards Katniss. "Go on now."

Katniss smiled at the two of them. "Come here baby girl. Uncle Haymitch is just being cranky."

Before Haymitch could scowl and snap back at Katniss the two of them stared in amazement as Willow slowly stepped forward, walking ever so slowly to her mother. "Has she ever done that before?" Katniss shook her head and widened her eyes. "Peeta!" Haymitch called into the kitchen.

Katniss was quiet except for urging her daughter to keep walking towards her. She was scared that if she too yelled for Peeta it would confuse Willow and she would stop. "Come here Willow. Come to Mommy." She urged until her daughter walked all the way to her and then fell back onto her butt.

Willow crawled up to her mom who was still staring in amazement. Katniss looked up to see Peeta smiling at them in the kitchen doorway. She laughed and picked up her daughter. "Look at you Willow! You just took your first steps!"

Katniss was smiling so hard that she was afraid that she might explode. The little girl in her arms was babbling happy noises and laughing. Katniss stood up and spun Willow around in the air, clearly proud.

Peeta and Haymitch were still watching in amazement as Katniss fawned over her daughter. It was rare that she was this happy. And when she was this joyful, it was a rare thing. The games had taken its toll on everyone. Katniss as much as the rest.

In that moment she wondered why she had never wanted kids. She couldn't imagine her life without Willow. This sweet little girl made every day worth living. And in that room was everyone that she truly cared about. She was happy that they were there, no matter how much Haymitch complained. It was a good life.

**A/N- Thanks for reading. I hope you all like this chapter. R&R. This is more a fluffy Katniss and Willow chapter, but I'm still happy with the outcome. Thanks.**


	5. Dinner and a Conversation

**Willow and Katniss are in the middle of dinner one night when she says her first word.  
One-Shot (ish). Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**Dinner and a Conversation**

"Here comes the train. Choo choo."

It was dinner time for Willow and she didn't really like eating peas. Or sweet potatoes. Or carrots. Now Katniss was trying green beans and praying that she wouldn't have to go change her shirt again.

Willow wasn't really open to the idea of trying green beans though. She closed her mouth tight and cringed away from the approaching spoon. Katniss sighed and put the spoon down, accepting that this wasn't going to get her anywhere.

She took a moment to glance at her daughter. Willow had grown a lot bigger in all of the months since she'd been born. Her hair had grown to cover her head thoroughly and reached down to the middle of her neck. A few of her baby teeth had grown in and completed that irresistible smile she had.

Suddenly, Katniss had an idea. She looked down at the spoon full of food next to her and then back up to her daughter. "Don't you want to eat sweetheart?" She carefully moved her hands closer to her daughter. "If you don't eat I'm going to tickle you." Her daughters face suddenly went pale. She knew what that meant

Katniss tried again to feed her the spoon of green beans but Willow still refused. The spoon was put down again and Katniss slowly moved her hands to her daughter's sides. Willow knew what was happening and tried to struggle, but was restricted in her high chair. Katniss went to work ticking all of her daughter's sensitive spots and listened to her daughter's laughs.

She stopped right before Willow's laughs could turn into cries, and quickly before Willow could stop laughing stuck the spoon full of food into her mouth. The baby's laughing stopped immediately and her expression changed from glee to shock. Willow gave her mother a sad pout of defeat to which she just shrugged as if to say 'you had it coming.'

Katniss thought she'd won this battle until her daughter slowly spit the green beans out of her mouth and back onto the high chair tray and her outfit. Normally, Katniss would've given up right there and just fed Willow later when she was hungry, but she had a bedtime schedule to keep to. Willow had to be in bed by 8:00 and it was 7:00 right now. And she still needed a bath between now and then.

"Willow. You need to eat baby girl." Katniss whined.

Willow cringed again as to say 'no' and her mother just shook her head. Katniss was too caught up in her daughter to even notice that Peeta had come home. She only realized it once he appeared around the corner of the kitchen.

Katniss turned her attention to him and Willow followed her example. "Hello my beautiful girls."

He smiled and walked over to his wife and daughter. He placed a simple kiss on Katniss's forehead, but she pulled him down for a real kiss. Their lips connected in a dance as Katniss pulled slightly on his shirt and he ran his hand through her hair. They only pulled apart when they heard another voice interrupt them.

"Dada!"

Katniss pushed him away and stared, shocked, at their daughter. That was her first word. She'd never spoken a real word before. 'And of all things its Peeta first," Katniss thought before putting on an overjoyed smile.

"What did you say baby girl? Did you say Dada?" Katniss unbuckled her daughter from her high chair and hoisted her up into her arms.

Her daughter smiled seeing her mommy smile so brightly at her. "Dada!" she said again, more sure of herself this time. Katniss smiled impossibly wider as Peeta wrapped his arms around her and stared at his daughter over his wife's shoulder.

"I'm right here girlie," he cooed to his daughter as he ran a hand through her hair.

Katniss smiled back at her husband, her face was bright and joyous. "Now if only I could get you to eat your food!"

Peeta reached around his wife and maneuvered the little smiling girl into his own arms. "Why don't I take her, work some magic, get her to eat, and you go get her bath ready?"

"Alright, but if you think you're going to be able to get her to eat-"

"Ah but if I remember correctly her first word was 'dada.' So if that's any indication-"

"Don't get arrogant 'daddy' I'll go start her bath and you can feed her. Just don't think this is fuel for your overconfidence fire. The only reason she said your name first is because you always save her from mommy."

Peeta set Willow back into her high chair and looked back at his wife, there was lust in his eyes. "I'm sorry mommy," he lied and put his arms around her. Katniss was reluctant but sunk into him and wrapped her arms around his neck. "Maybe after Willow goes to bed, we can have a bath of our own." His tone was seductive as it went down to a whisper, "Light some candles. Dim the lights..."

Right before their lips could connect Katniss pulled away. "Maybe. If you're good."

She walked out of the room to fix Willow's bath leaving Peeta dumbfounded staring after her, and she had a smirk on her face the entire way out of the room.

**A/N- So as you can tell I know absolutely nothing about babies and I stopped keeping track of how old Willow is because I don't know how old she would be for her first word or first steps. Sorry. I'm trying. Thanks for reading. R&R please.**


	6. Unexpected

**An unexpected development in the Mellark family  
One-Shot (ish). Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**Unexpected**

'What the hell?' was all Katniss could think when she stared down at the pregnancy test in her hand. And yes, it was positive.

She wasn't so much worried about all the things she was worried about the first time she was pregnant. Would she be a good mom? Would her kid love her? Those were all past concerns. She wasn't the best mom in the world, but after raising Willow for the past two and a half years, she'd accepted that she was pretty damn good.

Right then all that she as thinking about was _another_ kid. She knew Peeta wanted more kids and secretly she was pretty sure she did too. Katniss was just sure that when the time would come for them to have another kid, she and Peeta would have made the decision of when.

But the world decided to screw with her and the condom must've broke. The possibility only occurred to her that morning when she threw up at o' dark thirty. Peeta was already at work, which she thanked God for and she took 3 tests. Katniss was currently holding the third, which she'd taken a few hours after the first two, around lunchtime. Willow was down for her nap and Katniss decided to try again for the 'maybe' possibility that the first two were wrong. Only now was she grasping the truth.

She was sitting on the kitchen counter with her head in her hands wondering how she would tell Peeta, when she heard the front door open.

Peeta walked into the kitchen quietly knowing that Bow was taking a nap around this time. "Hi gorgeous," he placed a kiss on Katniss's forehead and walked over to the fridge. "I left my lunch here this morning." He pulled a brown sack out of the fridge.

"I figured it wouldn't be good to miss lunch so Daniel offered to take over for the hour while I come here and get it." He smiled that award winning smile of his that used to woo the capital so many years ago.

Katniss gave a small smile, but wasn't able to do or say anything but that. Peeta continued, "Although now that I'm thinking about it, I might as well eat here and take advantage of the hour I got off."

Still as though they were having a casual conversation Peeta squeezed in, "And what's wrong?"

Katniss's eyes widened, while her husband took a bite out of the sandwich he'd packed for lunch. "What makes you think something's wrong?"

Now his eyes widened. "I know you Katniss." He put his sandwich down. "What is it?"

Katniss sighed as Peeta stood, and walked up to stand in front of her, she still sitting on the counter. He slid between her legs so that the two of them were close, but still with enough distance between them. Katniss pulled the pregnancy test out of her pocked and held it out for him. "I'm pregnant."

Peeta was good at hiding whatever he was feeling, because with a straight face he took the test and gave it a good look. "Are you sure?" His voice was natural.

Suddenly all the doubt that Katniss wasn't feeling earlier came to her in a swift wave. What if Peeta _didn't_ want another kid? What if he was mad?

"Yes," she whispered in a small voice. She was going to say positive and see if a slight joke would lighten the mood but decided against it.

Peeta looked up at his wife and placed the pregnancy test beside her. Suddenly his face grew a smile so wide that it was rare for Katniss to see. Her eyes filled with hope as he said, "That's amazing Katniss."

She smiled too, her fears gone. Peeta's arms wrapped around her and lifted her off of the counter; he spun her gracefully around in the air once and placed her back down on the ground. His arms never left her and as soon as his wife's feet touched the ground he put his hands on both sides of her face and pulled her in for a deep kiss.

His lips placed quick kisses on her nose, forehead, cheeks, and then her lips again. They were both laughing when he was done and pulled back. His smile was vibrant. "My day can't get any better from now on. We get another little one to chase around the house."

A few tears fell down Katniss's face. They didn't get far before Peeta wiped them away and cupped his wife's face once again. They were both laughing in joy and staring into each other's eyes. They probably never would have broken apart if they weren't interrupted.

"Mommy," a sleepy voice said from the doorway. The couple looked to see Willow wiping her eyes from sleep and giving a tired yawn.

The little girl's eyes focused to notice her father, who wasn't due home for a good 5 hours. "Daddy?"

Peeta, still smiling, crouched down to his daughter's level. "Yeah sweetheart, I'm home for lunch."

Willow happily ran into his open arms and hugged him. Katniss noticed the yawn she emitted when she buried her head into her father's neck and made note to put her back down to finish her nap.

Peeta had the same idea. He stood up, still carrying his daughter and began towards the door. "Alright let's go put you down. Something tells me your nap isn't done yet."

Willow tried to object, but it was drowned in another yawn.

Before Peeta could exit the kitchen he turned back around to his wife. Katniss saw his smile and returned it. "I love you."

Her smile got impossibly brighter as she said, "I love you too."

He went to go put down their daughter and Katniss leaned back against the counter. Her hand wavered over her flat stomach and made note that it wouldn't stay flat for that much longer. There was a baby in there. Their newest family member was in there. She grinned at the thought of a little boy or girl running around with Willow in the field, sitting at the table and eating dinner with the three of them, driving Haymitch mad. Oh yes, how had she ever doubted this kid?

**A/N- Thanks for reading. I know it's been a while since I last updated, but I have new inspiration now and I'll keep updating. I promise. Thank you all so much for reading, reviewing, following, and favoring. It means a lot to me. **


	7. It's What the Baby Wants

**Katniss with her pregnancy hormones.  
One-Shot (ish). Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**It's What the Baby Wants**

Willow and Peeta were at the bakery for the day and Katniss was taking a long relaxing bath. She hadn't been this calm in a long time. And she sensed she wouldn't be this calm again for a long time. She and Peeta had another baby on the way. That would make 2 kids and absolutely no free time.

She was taking advantage of every spare minute she could. And so was Peeta. Her 6 month pregnant belly wasn't stopping much of the romance in their lives. Both of them were taking advantage of the passionate moments before they once again turned into exhausted ones from staying awake taking care of a newborn day and night.

The bath water was clear besides the occasional soap island here and there. Through the water and past her tummy, Katniss saw her body; scarred and burned from all those years ago. She often wondered how Peeta still found her beautiful, but stopped because she already knew the answer. Love.

The emotion filled her and Peeta's hearts and floated around them with every smile, kiss, and hug. Katniss never thought of having kids, but when she did, she realized that there was enough love to go around. Hell, they had enough love to live in forever.

Katniss laid her head back against the tub and closed her eyes. The world slowly slipped away to nothing but peace. She didn't know how long she stayed like that until the silence was broken from the sound of the front door opening.

"It must be Peeta and Willow," Katniss murmured as she reluctantly crawled out of the bathtub. She grabbed a towel to dry off and unplugged the stopper in the bathtub. The water swirled down the drain. Towels stopped fitting around her about a month ago and Katniss concluded that it was absolute shit when that happened. Peeta noticed when she stared wearing her bathrobe again (which only happened when she was pregnant) and it was hard for Katniss to explain that towels didn't fit around her pregnant stomach.

That was pretty much what life was when she was pregnant. Wearing oversized clothes (mostly Peeta's) and waddling everywhere she went was routine.

As Katniss walked in the kitchen she saw Willow sitting on the counter and Peeta taking the wrapper off a chocolate cupcake. Just as he was about to hand the cupcake to his daughter Katniss intervened. "Hey!"

They turned to her. "Not before dinner."

"But mom-" Willow whined.

Peeta turned back to his daughter and shrugged. "We're busted kiddo." He put the cupcake back down on the counter.

"How is my beautiful wife doing?" Peeta walked up to her and placed a kiss on her lips. His hands wavered from cupping her face to soothing over her belly.

Katniss never thought Peeta could get more perfect than he already was, but when she was pregnant... there was never a moment that he wasn't smiling. He just couldn't look at her without thinking about how she was carrying his child. _Their child_.

"Don't suck up to me Peeta," Katniss asserted.

"Yes ma'am," he sighed accepting that it was her hormones talking. He brightened up again immediately. "Well what do you two pretty ladies want for dinner?"

"Pizza!" Willow blurted, spreading a smile across her face.

And Katniss had to agree with her daughter. "Pizza sounds absolutely amazing."

Her stomach growled at the thought of the hot cheese and pepperoni. She wasn't craving it before now, but damn did it sound good. Peeta didn't seem opposed to the idea, but not exactly thrilled either.

Katniss threw him her best cute look to win him over. "It's what the baby wants," she rubbed her pregnant belly to prove her point and saw the resistance in his eyes fade away instantly.

He walked up to his wife and wrapped his arms around her, or at least as far as they could wrap around, with her swollen belly in the way. "Well that changes everything…"

Peeta leaned in to kiss her. Katniss only worried for a second about Willow before she saw that her daughter wasn't paying any attention. She was too busy staring longingly at the cupcake next to her.

They kissed for a few seconds before Katniss pushed her husband away. She threw him a smile. "Pizza?"

He sighed. "Alright, I'm leaving now."

Katniss couldn't stop smiling as she watched her husband grab the car keys and walk out the door to get dinner, not forgetting to smile back at her once more before closing the door.

Katniss walked up to the counter next to her daughter and grabbed the long forgotten cupcake. She picked it up and finished taking off the wrapper. Before Willow could say anything (complaining or lecturing), her mother ripped the cupcake in half and handed her daughter half of it.

Willow stared at the chocolate cupcake in her hand in awe, and was reluctant. Katniss stared longingly at it before turning back to her daughter.

"Don't tell your father."

And the cupcakes were delicious.

* * *

**Thank you all for reading, and thanks to everyone who favorited this or follows it. It means a lot to me and I try to update as much as I can. i just try hard to make the chapters actually good and not really reckless. Anyway I'll update soon. I promise. And I'm sorry this chapter is short!**


	8. A Little Bit of Steamy Everlark

**Exactly what the title is. Sorry nothing M. I know I like to read it sometimes too, but I don't think I can write it yet.  
One-Shot (ish). Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**A Little Bit of Steamy Everlark**

Willow was spending the day with Katniss's mom. She was staying in 12 for a month or two to see the kids. It had been over a year since she last visited and she wanted to meet Rye. Whenever Katniss's mom came out here she rented a small house so that she wouldn't feel like she was bothering Katniss and Peeta by staying in their guest bedroom.

It was Thursday, the one night a week that Willow insisted on going sleepover at Grandma's house. Katniss's mom said she never minded and loved to have her granddaughter over, so Katniss and Peeta happily gave in.

The clock read 8:00 and Peeta should be getting home at any moment. He always worked late at the bakery on Thursdays.

Rye was a lot like his sister in the way that they both slept soundly. He went down about half an hour ago and Katniss knew that would be the last they saw of him for the night. That is, until he woke up at 5:00 screaming and wanting to be fed. He was only a few months old and the most beautiful baby boy Katniss and Peeta had ever seen.

Willow sometimes got jealous of his attention but then Peeta would give her a cupcake, or tickle her, or make a dad joke, and she would be alright again. They were a family.

Katniss was just doing the dishes and thinking about how much she couldn't wait for Peeta to get home when he walked in the front door. She still had a bit of excess pregnancy hormones left from when she gave birth a few months ago so instead of just hugging Peeta like any normal night she ran and jumped into his arms.

Her arms snaked around his neck and her head buried in his shoulder. Katniss wrapped her legs around him and was murmuring little nothings into him.

Peeta laughed whole-heartedly and held his wife closer to him. "Did you miss me?"

Katniss didn't bother to dig her head out of his shoulder when she whispered, "So much."

He chuckled. Katniss pulled back a bit to look at her husband. His blue eyes trailed her in immediately. They were loving and there was a bit of tiredness in them. She smiled and asked, "Long day?"

"Kind of. There was a rush at lunch time but the rest of it was pretty slow. Where are the kids?" Peeta leaned back onto the wall, still holding his wife close.

"Rye is asleep."

"Willow?"

"It's Thursday."

"Ahhh."

Peeta walked over to the kitchen counter and placed Katniss down on it. Her legs released their hold and Peeta slipped in between them. His hand played through her hair as the two of them's eyes never disconnected, and neither did Katniss's arms from her husband's neck.

The tension was thick. Both their lips were parted and silently screaming for a connection with the other person's. Slowly Katniss inched up to meet her husband's lips just as he inched down.

He got the last words in before their lips touched. "I guess we have the night to ourselves."

Their lips danced in a song of passion and romance. Peeta's arms tightened around Katniss's waist causing a small moan to escape her. One of her hands moved up to tug at Peeta's blond locks. She tightened her other arm around his neck trying to pull him impossibly closer.

Peeta groaned and scooped his wife up into his arms again, not breaking their kiss. He walked them to their bedroom and shut the door behind them.

He set Katniss on the ground, their kiss becoming more passionate by the second. She moved her hands over Peeta's chest, eliciting a deep groan from him. Her hands found the hem of his shirt and pulled it up as far as she could reach. Peeta pulled it over his head, because his wife couldn't do so with the height difference.

As his shirt went so did hers.

Then more clothes.

Until the night was truly just left to the two of them and the act of love making.

**A/N- It's been a good 5 days or so, so I thought you all deserved another chapter. Thanks to everyone who read and I'll update in a little while. Thanks.**


	9. A Disagreement

**Katniss and Peeta get into an argument late one night when he comes home late.  
One-Shot (ish). Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**A Disagreement**

"It's not fair of you to keep coming home this late!"

"I was working! A bakery doesn't run itself Katniss!"

"Bullshit." Katniss turned away from her husband and walked into the kitchen. She resumed doing the dishes like she was when Peeta came home and before the fight had even started.

Peeta followed his wife into the kitchen and harshly grabbed her shoulder to make her face him again. A dish fell from her hand and back into the sink, Katniss didn't even bother to wonder if it was broken. "Bullshit? I'm working my ass off on a daily basis to provide for this family!"

"You make it sound like we'd starve! The Capital is practically throwing money at us begging for us to take it." After the revolution all of the Hunger Games victors were offered enough money to do whatever they wanted to with their lives, as a way to say sorry. Mostly it was a way for people in The Capital to feel better about themselves, and that's why very few of the victors actually took up the offer.

"You know we couldn't take that money Katniss," he hissed. His face stiffened harder the longer this argument went on.

"Of course I know that," Katniss shook her head. "But I'm tired of you leaving before the sun rises only to come home at o'dark thirty. The kids don't see you anymore because you refuse to take a day off and I'm the one who has figure out what to tell them when they're crying and asking 'where's Daddy?'"

Katniss used to take the kids to the bakery to see Peeta sometimes, but one day that led to a bit of an outburst when Willow broke a glass bowl. Truthfully Katniss just thought Peeta was working too hard. She used to run the bakery with her husband but after two kids, becoming a stay at home mom was her new job. She loved her kids, they were the light of her life, but she never got to hunt in the woods anymore. And she rarely left the house because taking two kids with her anywhere out in public was more than she could handle.

"Don't make this my fault Katniss; don't make me seem like the villain!"

Katniss had a few tears running down her face by then. She was trying to stay strong but this was the first time her and Peeta had fought in a long time and it was hard for her. Usually she could read her husband, but right then she was too caught up in her own thoughts to try and understand him or what he was thinking.

It was silent for a few minutes. Katniss had plenty of things to say to Peeta but none of them made their way past her lips. And apparently the same thing applied for Peeta. The silence lasted in the quiet room until a small voice broke through.

"Mommy?"

Katniss turned to see little Willow in the living room doorway. She wasn't crying, but she looked scared out of her mind. Katniss's anger disappeared and her mind turned to putty.

"Sweetheart…" she whispered. "Mommy and Daddy are just talking. Go back to bed." She knew telling her to go back to bed wouldn't work, but she prayed that it would. Because then her daughter began to cry… And nothing could've broken Katniss's heart more in that moment than seeing her baby cry.

The Girl on Fire crumpled to her knees and opened her arms. Willow didn't wait for her mother to say anything. She ran right into Katniss's arms and began to sob into her shoulder. Katniss tried to hold back the tears but a few silently fell loose.

And then she felt another weight fall onto her. She opened her eyes to see little Rye prying his way into his mother's lap. "He must've woken up during the fighting too," Katniss thought. She opened up enough to let both of her babies into a hug. She wiped her tears away on Willow's shoulder and warily looked up at Peeta.

He was crying too. The tears streamed down his face silently and he looked like he had so many years ago in the games. Broken.

Katniss took a deep breath and stood up carrying the weight of both her kids. She had to be the strong one here. "Alright, let's get the two of you back to bed." She handed Willow off to Peeta to take care of and went to put Rye back in his own bed.

After a few minutes she had the little three year old boy tucked in and once again ready for bed. She wished him a good night sleep and told him not to let the bed bugs bite. And when Katniss was just about to exit through the doorway his small voice stopped her.

"Mommy."

She turned back around to the little blond haired boy. "Yeah kiddo?" She walked back to the side of his bed.

"You and Daddy fighting."

Katniss wasn't sure if it was a question or not, but answered as if it were anyway. "Yeah sweetheart we are. But everything is gonna be fine. Daddy and I still love each other, and you know what?"

"What?" his small voice asked.

"We love you too," she placed a silly kiss on his nose that surfaced a small giggle from him and left the room.

When Katniss walked back into the kitchen, Peeta was sitting at the table with his head in his hands. She walked up beside him but didn't sit down. Neither of them said anything at first. They just stood there in the dim room where you could hear a pin drop.

Peeta lifted his head from his hands but didn't look at his wife. Instead he stared blankly at the table. "Willow asked if I still loved you all."

Katniss let in a sharp breath in shock. "What did you say?"

He turned to her. "After the initial shock?" he turned away again. "I told her that I was sorry and that I love her. And that I love Rye and you too. "

"Do you?" Katniss wanted to ask, but kept it to herself.

"I know I haven't been around lately. I just never really understood that until now." He let out a sigh and maybe a few tears. "My daughter asked if I still loved her."

A tear fell down his cheek. Katniss walked closer and pulled him closer toher. His head rested on her upper stomach and his arms wrapped around her. Katniss held him close and whispered little 'it's okays.'

After a few minutes Peeta pulled back and stood up. He grabbed his wife by the shoulders and pulled her gaze up to meet his. "I'm going to hire someone else to run the bakery with me. I'll start closing earlier and opening a bit later. That way I'll be here more. That way… this doesn't have to happen again."

Katniss nodded her head. "That'd be nice."

"I'm so sorry Katniss," her husband whimpered.

"I know you are. I just missed you."

Peeta's face fell, and his hands move up to cup his wife's face. "I love you."

"I love you too."

* * *

**A/N- I really wanted to write for you all to get away from homework! Thanks for reading. Tell me what you think, I love commentary.**

**So my backpack is checkered and I wanted to personalize it a few days ago, so I put a fandom symbol in each of the checkers and it's amazing. There's a TARDIS in one of them and an iratze in another and it keeps going. I love it.**

**I'm going to make a Star Wars the Clone Wars fic, because why not. I love that TV show, it's absolutely amazing.**


	10. A Good Day at the Bakery

**Katniss takes the kids to the bakery to see Peeta. Just a nice day for the family.  
One-Shot. Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**Katniss in Labor**

Katniss decided to take the kids to the bakery on one of the less crowded days. It was about 10:00 when the three of them departed the house. She had to get the little ones all dressed up and not running around the house in their underwear. And that was just Rye. Willow was a sweetheart who couldn't wait to see her daddy at work.

They got to the bakery a little after 10:30 and the familiar chime rang as the door opened. Katniss immediately saw her husband behind the counter in his apron and even after all the time they'd spent together she still blushed at thinking how hot he looked with it on.

Willow released her mother's hand and ran right into Peeta's arms. "Daddy!"

Peeta picked up his daughter and swung her around in the air a few times. When he stopped, they were both smiling at each other. "Hi sweetheart." He smiled even wider at how cute she looked in the little red polka dotted dress she was wearing.

He set her on the counter and looked down to see little Rye below him. The little blond haired boy had his arms out cooing for his daddy to pick him up. Peeta did, and after a hug and a kiss he set him next to Willow on the countertop.

You'd think they hadn't seen each other in days.

Katniss laughed and walked over to her husband. In a twist turn of events he grabbed her hand and spun her around once. 'He must be in a good mood,' she thought to herself. She started to laugh but stopped when the spin ended and she fell into Peeta's chest. Then she started laughing again.

This guy made her feel like a love-struck teenager again.

Peeta was smiling down at his wife. His hands were on her hips trying to pull her closer as she resisted (their kids were right next to them). They were both smiling when Katniss went up on her toes to give her husband a quick kiss. When she was back on the heels of her feet, he swooped down and stole another kiss.

"Hey!" She playfully swatted his chest and started to pull away.

Peeta smirked and pulled his wife back to him. "Oh, you can't blame me for trying." Katniss pulled away still smiling to herself. He was right, she couldn't blame him.

Then Peeta's assistant/employee/coworker walked in. She was a young, cute girl named Mia. Her hair was deep black and she had a petite shape. It's a lie to say that Katniss wasn't jealous when Mia was first hired. She was jealous. Well that was until Peeta told her that Mia wasn't really into guys and already had a fiancé named Isabella.

Katniss wasn't really worried after that.

"Hello Mrs. Mellark," She smiled at Katniss and waved at Willow and Rye. "And kiddos."

"Hi, Mia," the kids said in unison.

"Hello Mia, how are you?" Katniss joined in.

"I'm doing well. Isabella and I actually found a date for our wedding."

"Oh congratulations!"

Mia took her lunch break then, and left the family of four with the bakery to themselves for the next few hours. The girl had grown on Katniss, she was nice and smart, and always told Katniss if there was anything wrong with her husband, or if she was ever concerned. So yes, she approved of the young girl.

"Daddy can we have cheese buns?" Willow smiled sweetly and gave Peeta a puppy dog face.

Rye joined in with his sister. "Cheese Buns!"

The parents laughed at their kiddos, and Peeta looked over at his wife. "Well it's up to Mommy…"

Katniss silently cursed at Peeta. He did this whenever the kids got this way. He would turn the attention to her, so that the kids would too. That way she would have to deal with their puppy dog eyes pushed up to max volume, instead of him. Only this topic wasn't so bad.

"You all look like I'm going to say no to cheese buns. That's impossible."

The kids cheered for cheese buns. Peeta kissed his wife and whispered 'I love you' in her ear, sending shivers up her spine.

The 4 of them sat together for the rest of the day, tasting whatever Peeta had come out of the oven. Later Haymitch came by and the 5 of them spent the night storytelling and dancing together. It was one of those memorable days that they had.


	11. A Visitor

**An old friend visits the Mellark's in district 12.  
One-Shot. Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**A Visitor**

Katniss smiled as she felt a pair of arms wrap around her waist. She leaned her head back into the person she knew was her husband.

Peeta lowered his head to his wife's ear, "It's a big day."

Katniss nodded slightly, "I know."

The couples' eyes wandered over to their children. They watched as the front door to their house opened and a very old friend walked in.

"Auntie Anna!" Willow and Rye yelled as they ran into the woman's arms.

She smiled and picked up the ecstatic children as best as she could (they were both getting big now at their ages). "Hello there little munchkins!"

The kids laughed as their aunt picked them up and spun them around. She laughed along with them. "Hey kiddos, tell your mom and dad to stop being so lovey dovey. It's so sweet I can't help but cringe." She shot Katniss and Peeta a foul look.

The couple smiled knowing she was simply joking. Peeta's arms only tightened around Katniss as he stuck his tongue out at their old friend. She looked like she was going to have a witty comeback but was interrupted by a voice from the kitchen door.

"Johanna Mason," Haymitch marveled at the sight.

Johanna turned and looked Haymitch in the eyes. "In the flesh, Haymitch."

"It's been a while."

She smirked, "Time hasn't passed well for you, has it?"

Haymitch frowned at her attempted joke. "I'm younger than I look sweetheart."

"Whatever you say old man."

Haymitch silently growled at the woman he hadn't seen in so long. It was good to see her though. Johanna looked just as strong as ever. She and Katniss spoke often, about once a month. It was always good to hear how Johanna was doing.

Currently she was engaged to a man she met in her district. She was still somewhat embarrassed about the whole thing so only Katniss knew. And Katniss was so happy that her old friend was finally able to trust someone enough to marry them.

Katniss and Peeta smiled at the sight of Johanna with their kids. She was always good with them and it was a shame that she only got to visit once a year. Secretly, the two of them saw past Johanna's tough exterior and saw that she enjoyed their kids too, no matter how many times she said that she doesn't do mushy stuff.

Johanna pushed herself up off the ground and walked over to where Katniss and Peeta stood. Katniss was the first to hold out her arms and take their old friend into a hug. "It's good to see you Johanna."

"It's good to see you too," she muttered back in Katniss's ear.

They broke away and Johanna gave Peeta a quick hug. They didn't get many visitors in district 12 so Peeta and Katniss took what they could get.

Seeing Johanna didn't remind Katniss of the Games as much as it once did. There was a time where everywhere she looked she saw The Hunger Games and The Capital. That's how it was for many years. Only after so long could she finally lower her guard a bit to see reality. That was when she was able to start a family with Peeta.

Johanna visiting still brought back some buried memories, but Katniss needed those memories to keep herself on her feet. The old friend brought back good memories as well as bad. She remembered some of the good times she had with Johanna throughout the entire time she'd know her. The good memories don't make Katniss forget the bad ones, but they do make it a bit more bearable.

**A/N- Sorry it's been a while. I kind of just make one of these whenever I feel like it. There's no real pattern. Right now I'm mostly absorbed in my Star Wars the Clone Wars fic. Still I'll post these whenever. Sometimes I get brilliant ideas for them and those ones are the best. Thanks for reading. -Saraphine**


	12. Chapter 12

**The Mellark family is packing for a small camping trip. It's a bit hectic though.  
One-Shot. Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**Going on a Trip**

"Peeta! Where are the sleeping bags?"

"They're in the closet, Mom." Willow informed Katniss as she ran to the table and grabbed her book.

The family was going on a small camping trip for the weekend and the house was in pure havoc trying to prepare.

"Thanks sweetheart." Katniss smiled and rushed off down the hall.

When she arrived at the closet Peeta was just passing by her. "They're in the closet." He gave his wife a quick kiss on the cheek and reached around her to grab a few blankets.

Katniss turned and kissed his cheek as well. "Yeah, Willow told me."

Just then, the couple heard a loud and familiar wail from down the hall. "I got him." Katniss snatched the sleeping bags and rushed off to where she heard Rye crying from.

She threw the sleeping bags into the family's pile of stuff for the camping trip and crouched down next to her crying little boy. "What's wrong kiddo?"

Rye, still crying, crawled into his mother's lap and cried into her shirt. Katniss rubbed her son's back for a minute until she pulled away. She quickly scanned over her child's body for any blood from an injury. She thanked the universe that there wasn't any.

"What is it sweetheart?" She asked after she couldn't find any apparent reasons for him to be crying.

Tears still streaking down his face, Rye whimpered, "My head."

"Did you hit it?" Katniss's face fell as she watched her little boy's eyes fill up with more tears.

She lifted Rye up on his own two feet again and griped him by the shoulders. "I know it hurts. I'm sorry baby, but you're going to be fine. Let's go grab that last cupcake that's in the fridge alright? Would that make you feel better?"

Rye, his face still streaked with tears, nodded. "Mhmm."

Katniss grinned at her son, causing a small smile to escape him. She picked up her boy and sat him at the table where she put the treat in front of him. The mother kissed her little boy on the cheek and ran off to continue packing.

Her next stop was in her daughter's room.

"How're you doing Willow?"

The young girl turned from packing her duffel bag to looking at her mother. "Good Mom-I'm almost done."

Katniss smiled at her little girl. She was independent like her mother and definitely more on top of things. Katniss was still in the middle of packing while her young daughter was nearly done and ready to go.

"Alright, just checking." And she was off again. Katniss had to go finish packing her _own_ suitcase.

In her own room Katniss was hastily throwing random things into her suitcase. When she looked back in it later on she would probably have nothing that she actually needed. At that moment though, she just concerned with actually having things in a suitcase.

The Mellark family was supposed to leave in 15 minutes if they were going to get to the camp site before it closes.

"Last minute packing?" Peeta asked his wife as he walked into the room.

"Yep."

"We're on the same page then." Katniss looked around for only a second to see that Peeta was packing his suitcase as well. Katniss turned to packing again only to have her attention turned back to Peeta again when he spoke to her, "You're hairbrush."

Katniss turned around just in time to catch the hairbrush Peeta tossed to her. "Thanks." She threw it in her bag. "Your socks," She threw them to her husband.

This went on until the both of them were finally done packing and ready to leave. Peeta grabbed his and his wife's suitcase preparing to go put them in the car. Right as he was about to walk out the bedroom door Katniss stopped him. "Wait-"

Peeta stopped in his tracks and turned to his wife. "What did I forget?"

Katniss quickly crawled across the bed until she was in front of him. Peeta raised his eyebrows as Katniss cupped his face. She placed a sweet and gentle kiss on his lips. When the two of them separated it was still silent. It was a peaceful silent though-one of those moments where everything around you is just beautiful.

"You forgot that."

Peeta smiled and quickly kissed Katniss's forehead. After that, he left to load up the car. Katniss was left smiling to herself on the bed after he had departed. She couldn't wipe that stupid grin off her face.

**A/N- Guess who just updated bitches! That's right. Last night I was bored so I wrote this for you all even though my heart isn't really in this story anymore. Still, you all like this. So I updated and I'm a lot more proud (prouder?) of myself than I should be. Anyway, enjoy your update. -Saraphine**


	13. Trouble Sleeping

**Katniss has a nightmare and Peeta comforts her. Mostly fluff, little plot.  
One-Shot. Fluff. R&R. Disclaimer- I don't own The Hunger Games.**

**Doubts of Parenthood**

**Trouble Sleeping**

The minute Katniss woke up from the nightmare, she left.

She pushed herself off the bed, grabbed her robe, and walked out of the bedroom. She wasn't quite sure where she was going. She just knew she wanted to walk. Something led her away from her bedroom. All of the sudden the air was just thick and it was hard to breathe.

Katniss ended up outside on the porch. She sat on the bench breathing in the cool summer air. All she was trying to do was clear her head. Her breaths were deep as she tried to calm herself.

Her head didn't turn when she heard the door open beside her.

She knew it was Peeta. Believe it or not, this situation had happened a few times before. Actually, it was fairly common. It wasn't as common as it used to be but it was still common.

Peeta and Katniss still had nightmares. All of the victors did, no matter how many years it had been since The Games. The pain lessened, but it never fully went away.

Katniss was broken from her train of thought when she felt a warm arm slide around her. Without even thinking she leaned into her husband and rested her head on his chest. Peeta's arms tightened around his wife and pulled her into his lap.

Katniss adjusted herself so that she was as close to her husband as she could be. Her arms were against his chest as if trying to absorb the warmth radiating off of him.

She wanted to cry. She felt like crying. But she couldn't. No tears came to her eyes.

Instead the couple just sat there for what could've been a few minutes or forever; Katniss wouldn't have known the difference.

This was the best feeling for Katniss. When Peeta held her like this, the world could fall apart around them and she wouldn't notice. When he had his arms around her she felt _truly_ safe.

She was once again driven out of her thought when Peeta placed a sweet and gentle kiss to her head.

Katniss looked up at her husband and gave him a small smile. Peeta grinned a larger smile back down at her. He ran one of his hands up from her back and softly ran it through her hair. "Can we go back to bed?" Katniss asked.

Peeta didn't need any other words. He swiftly stood up with his wife in his arms and headed back inside.

Katniss's arms tightened around her husband's neck when she felt him lift her up. When they were headed back to their room she shook her head in his chest. "Show off."

"Guilty as charged," he whispered back as they entered their bedroom.

His wife laughed as he gently lay her down on the bed. He smiled at her as he took off his shoes and lay down next to her. There they fell asleep in each other's arms.

**A/N- I know right, look who updated? You all actually like this story so I was inspired to update. Who would have guessed it would've been this soon? Anyway, enjoy this chapter my readers. -Saraphine**


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